MSU System Internationalization Program and Strategic Goals

The internationalization program has been part of the agenda in both local and international HEIs. In fact, the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) has been prioritizing internationalization in its priority programs. With the passage of the transnational education law (RA 11448), which expands the provisions of CMO 55 series 2016, there is now a legal framework for providing funds for faculty and student mobility programs, overseas education programs, joint degree programs, and foreign universities to establish extension campuses within the Philippines in partnership with local universities.  However, at present, the MSU system has been behind the competition among SUCs in the internationalization program, although the current initiatives of the International Affairs and Linkages have been producing significant results and accomplishments.

Internationalization through the lens of the Mindanao State University’s vision, mission, and goals:

VISION

Mindanao State University aspires to be a nationally and internationally recognized premier University that promotes and upholds academic excellence, global competitiveness, environmental consciousness, and peace and development

MISSION

• To lead in social transformation through peace education and integration of Muslims and other cultural minority groups into the mainstream society;
• To Ensure excellence in instruction, research development, innovation, extension, and environmental education and discovery;
• To Advance national and international linkages through collaborations, and
• To Demonstrate greater excellence, relevance, and inclusiveness for Mindanao and the Filipino nation

GOALS

• To Promote and strengthen academic excellence in all levels of education to produce graduates who are competent to meet the future needs of humankind;
• To Enhance the visibility of the University through the production of high-impact research and innovations
• To Respond to globalization trends through partnerships and collaborative relationships with national and international universities, research institutions, and industries
• To Secure and preserve the University’s resources, facilities, and reputation
• To Integrate peace education programs into the University curricula
• To Strengthen extension services, commercialize, technology transfer, and translate research outputs for the enhancement of the quality of life
• To Transform the University through investments in human resource development, infrastructures, and equipment.

The world economy is increasingly integrated. Many regions around the world, like the ASEAN region, move towards globalization through the creation of a single market and production base with a free flow of good services, investment, capital, and skilled labor in years to come. Parallel to this trend, the internationalization program has been the major thrust in many academic institutions to address the globalization trends. Consequently, many academic institutions compete for the best students and staff to ensure academic excellence and global competitiveness. To avail the opportunities offered by the globalization trends, policies, and programs should be implemented to address this challenge.

 Building strategic partnerships in teaching and learning, research, and extension programs (community programs) are the main focus of the internationalization program of MSU in the next six years. This can be done through the following strategic goals:

• Strategic Partnership in Teaching and Learning
  • Linkages in teaching and learning could be enhanced by tapping industry experts to teach for students to learn from actual practitioners and get some job opportunities from participating industries. Structured internship also increased students’ knowledge and skills by designing their internship programs parallel to industry needs. Academic mobility and dual degree programs shall also be promoted to enhance students’ exposure to outside world and for them to establish networks and linkages.
  • Another strategy to enhance globalization in teaching and learning is to forge cross-institutional cross-disciplinary collaboration. Some forms of collaboration under this strategy include knowledge exchange, talent development and enhancement, and facilities and infrastructure sharing. The knowledge exchange could be in the form of a mobility program
  • Strengthen collaboration agreements with other universities, local and international, not only for academic exchange but also for sharing of facilities and infrastructure. In many instances, convergence efforts of universities through the sharing of academic facilities and infrastructure resources would ensure a high impact of outputs at low costs.
• Strategic Research Collaboration and Innovations
  • MSU shall define priority areas of research fields and invest in these areas to optimize impacts at lower costs. Some of the important areas of research include sustainable science, health sciences, engineering, forestry, agriculture, fisheries, education, public administration, and peace and development
  • Another strategy is building up the presence of MSU through branding. For example, MSU should strive to establish its name as the peace university in Mindanao as its major contribution to national development. Building up the presence of MSU could also be achieved through the internationalization of research programs. This could be achieved through increased collaboration programs with other universities, both local and international. Excellent website facilities and content should also be provided to increase the visibility of MSU in the outside world.
  • MSU also needs to direct its research programs to high-impact research, although this would mean high investment costs. This could be achieved through building a research niche, which is another important strategy to increase the presence of MSU at local and international levels. Research niche building means defining specific research areas as specialization fields to increase the national and international relevance of the university. MSU shall focus its research investments in the following priority research areas: innovative technology, sustainable science, wellness sciences, humanities (peace and development), and frontier sciences (cutting-edge innovation and technology).
• Networking and Collaboration
  • International collaboration engagement is the primary ingredient of internationalization
  • This could be in the form of a joint degree program, student exchange, academic staff member exchange, collaborative research, exchange of publication materials, cooperation in training projects, and development of joint-venture projects. The scale of engagement could be through bilateral cooperation (University to University Cooperation), regional cooperation (through International Associations and International Forums), and government-to-government cooperation.
  • International mobility of faculty and students includes joint degree programs, sandwich programs, and visiting scholars.